The Undeveloped Story
by whatyouown
Summary: Always focused on her studies, Hermione Granger loses sight of everything else and gets caught roaming the halls one night by none other than Professor Snape. His image is haunting her dreams, and frightening her every step of the way. Possible SSHG?
1. Time & Confusion

**A/N:** It's my first fanfic, so be patient with me, it might... well, quite frankly, it might suck. I can't really judge myself. Which is why it's here, so I can get some hits and hopefully some feedback. I know that this first chapter is a little boring and plotless and it's basically all descriptions and no dialogue, but bear with me, I promise the plot is on its way! Hahah. So if you're reading it, thank you so much for your time and patience!

** AH! Disclaimer: I don't own anyone or just about anything in this. If I did... well, if I did, basically life would suck for the characters. **I'd probably forget to feed them or involve them in the story. You know, the usual... I'll stop rambling for you now.

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She sat in silence. The only noise that was heard throughout the entire library was the scratching of her quill, back and forth as she filled the parchment with her endless knowledge. Everyone knew she was easily the smartest girl in the school. So why did she try so hard? Well, it was simply in her nature. Hermione Granger didn't see things that way. It was never black or white. There was always more to it... 

She looked around, seeing that the small group of Ravenclaws that had been in the library earlier had left by now. It seemed everyone else was in fact long gone. Hermione grabbed her pocket watch and almost fell out of her chair when she had realized what time it was.

_11:00! Oh gods, I've missed curfew terribly!_ She scrambled to grab all of her books, figuring that she'd explain to Madame Pince the next day where they had disappeared to. Carefully yet hastily shoving her parchment and quills into her bag, Hermione picked herself up off of the chair, grabbed her wand, and headed for the door. She entered into the lofty hallways, her feet lightly pounding against the cool stone. With her wand held close, Hermione muttered a quiet "Lumos!" before sticking her wand behind the cloth of her knapsack to conceal to light to a certain degree.

As Hermione ascended the stairs, tentatively making her way back to Gryffindor Tower with all hopes of going unnoticed, her pace quickened and her breath intensified. Just as she was nearing the corner, _BAM!_ Her bag dropped to the floor with a deep thud as her body rocked back and forth unstably. Hermione's heart sank and she clutched her stomach, suddenly feeling nauseous and unaware of her surroundings. She was just about to fall, her head soon to hit the floor, when her arm was yanked out of the air as she was pulled into an upright position. Then, not but a moment later, a small light flickered in front of her, revealing the face of Severus Snape.

"Tsk, tsk. Our little star student, out of bed at such an ungodly hour. Should I so much as inquire as to what has you roaming the halls tonight, or would I be better off leaving the matter as it is right now?"

"I, uhm, I-I'm, l-listen, Prof-professor, I'm really –" Hermione started.

"Yes, 'tis a pity you aren't able to find the words to explain your... situation." Professor Snape's silky voice cut through the air, making the hairs on Hermione's body stick up out of fright. Seeing the terrified and all-too-disheveled expression on her face, he smirked, quite amused at his ability, no, talent, to scare the wits off of unsuspecting students. Not to mention, scaring Miss Granger? This was a new accomplishment, even for Severus himself.

"Well, Miss Granger, in all honesty, I do not care as to why you cannot keep your bushy little head in your dormitories. Just know that you will be punished. Severely."

Hermione tensed at this thought. _Punished? Severely?! I've never even been reprimanded before, let alone punished! Oh, just look what you've done now. Had to be perfect, right? Couldn't just be done with the stupid paper and settle in for the night. No, you had to go and get yourself into these brilliant situations. Smart move, Hermione. Really. I'm proud of you. _Hermione mentally smacked herself in the face, wincing at her own anger.

She tried speaking. "I, well, I-I really am sorry, Professor Snape, I was only trying to finish a paper – "

Once again, she was cut short by the Professor's eerie voice, slicing the cloud of pressure that hung above them. "Nevertheless, I trust that you can find your way back to your dormitory now. And, need I remind you to... watch where you're going, from now on, yes? Let us not make this a habit, Miss Granger."

Hermione leant over to grab her knapsack, picking up her wand and hurriedly stepping down the corridor, never more excited to see the common room in her life. When she finally reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, she whispered the password and shuffled inside. Almost immediately, Hermione collapsed on the silky red couch, the flames from the fire flickering across the floor and dancing upon her face. She sighed, and took her head into her hands, tempted to cry.

_How could I let this go? 11:00? Ugh! I'm not Ronald Weasley for goodness sake, I'm capable of keeping track of time..._

She continued to sit, her face illuminated by the light of the fire. She just sat there for minutes, maybe even hours. Thinking. Not moving. Merely thinking. Time went by, and she slowly drifted into a deep sleep. Overwhelmed with grief that seized her, she sank into the cushions, engulfed in her dreams...

_She was walking down the lonely corridor. Sensing she was being followed, Hermione quickened her pace. She heard heavy breathing behind her and the smack of footsteps Suddenly, she felt a cold hand grab her as she turned around to face Professor Snape. She stared at him intently, half out of fear, the other half out of... desire? _

"_Detention, Miss Granger. You will be here immediately following dinner. If you are not on time, I shall be forced to deduct more points than I already have. Now run along."_

_Hermione ran, literally, ran, with every fiber of her being. She kept running and running, not entirely sure where she was headed, but she knew that she had to get away. She just continued down the hallway, her small feet carrying her as far as they could until..._

"No! Not detention! No!" Hermione woke up panicked, struggling to regain her breath. She looked around at her surroundings. A sliver of moonlight shone through the large windows of the common room as the fire flickered to a close. She clasped her hands together, realizing where she was. And silently praising that it was just a dream.

"I'd better get to sleep," she mumbled to herself as she groggily made her way up to the dormitories. Hermione crossed the last step, threw on some pajamas, crawled into bed and threw the covers over herself.

"No... more... bad... dreams..."

Hermione woke up the following morning, after a long night of tossing and turning. She had a sinking feeling growing in her stomach, but unaware of what was causing this, she proceeded to get ready for the day. She pulled on her school uniform, smoothing out each little crease with her hands. Then, she ventured to tackle the forest of hair on her head, attacking her scalp with the brush almost violently. Almost half an hour later, Hermione emerged from her dorm and saw Harry and Ron waiting for her on the couches in the common room.

"You ready for breakfast?" Harry asked.

"Um, yeah, sure," came Hermione's reply, somewhat frazzled.

They made their way to the Great Hall, arriving just in time to see the tables burst to life with food and happy students. Harry, Ron, and Hermione took a seat halfway down the Gryffindor table. Harry and Ron began to stuff their plates with whatever was within reach. When they saw Hermione sit in silence as she picked at her food, they exchanged questionable glances.

"Oi, Harry, what's up with Hermione?" Ron whispered under his breath.

"Hermione... is something wrong?" Harry asked tentatively.

"What? Oh, no, just don't feel so great, you know." Hermione said in response. She glanced around the Great Hall, her eyes trailing along each table, until they came to rest on a glazing pair of eyes at the Head Table. Professor Snape gazed down upon her, practically engraving his eyes into her skull. It was then that Hermione remembered her dream, and the night before, and as it all came rushing back to her, she felt the ache in her stomach deepen. She quickly looked away, shifting her eyes to the floor. Without looking up, she began to speak.

"Um, listen, I think I'll just head back to the common room, I don't feel too well. I'll see you in class?"

"Yeah, see you in Potions, Hermione," replied Harry.

Her stomach dropped another twenty feet. _Of course! The one person I'd like most to avoid right now is the one I get to stare at for over an hour. This day could not get much worse any quicker..._ But oh, was she wrong.

Hermione stayed solitary in the common room until Ron and Harry came to find her and walk to class.

"Time for potions, 'Mione," said Ron.

Hermione just looked at them and smiled, trying to hide her internal disgust.

The three grabbed their books, exited the Gryffindor common room, and made their way down to the dungeons. Harry and Ron idly chatted about Quidditch, while Hermione followed along, lost in her thoughts and fearful anticipations. By the time they had reached the classroom, Hermione's stomach had dropped all the way through the floor. They walked in, took their seats, and waited for their professor to appear and snark his way through the lesson, as usual.

A few short moments later, the door flung closed with a loud bang as a masking swirl of robes shifted through the classroom.

"Mr. Malfoy, in your seat before you find yourself permanently attached to it," came the harsh, dark voice of Professor Snape. Needless to say, Draco Malfoy didn't have much trouble finding his seat.

Snape gave a slight nod and signaled to the board. "Instructions are written. Begin your potions."

The class began silently working, with constant bubbling and stirring echoing throughout the cold dungeon classroom. Hermione was practically petrified of even being in Snape's presence, but on the other hand, it kept her on her feet. She was too afraid to even look at the man, so she spent all her energy working on her potion until every last drop reeked of perfection. Before she knew it, class had ended. Hermione gathered her things and was on her way out the door when a cold voice called back to her.

"Miss Granger, not so fast."

She spun around to see Snape standing at the front of the classroom, arms folded, eyebrows raised, and an anything but pleasant expression on his face. He looked directly at her.

"I do believe that you have not been assigned your punishment for your little 'after hours escapade' yet, am I correct?"

She merely looked at him and trembled.

"Detention, Miss Granger. You will be here immediately following dinner. If you are not on time, I shall be forced to deduct more points than I already have. Now run along."

This time, Hermione stopped trembling. In fact, she stopped moving entirely. Probably stopped breathing, as well. _Why do_ _I feel like I've been through this before? _Then it hit her. The dream. Oh, that nasty dream. _Those were his EXACT words. No... can't be. Oh, I have so got to lie down..._

She nodded to Professor Snape and hustled out the door, in pursuit of a nice, long nap to possibly relieve her current coma-like state. On her way out, she bumped into Harry and Ron, who had been waiting outside the classroom for her.

"What was that all about?" asked Ron.

"Uh, well, I... I'll explain later." Hermione hurried off in an upwards direction.

When she reached the common room, she climbed up the stairs to the girls' dormitory and collapsed on her bed. She took off her robe, grabbed her books, and started a Charms paper that was due the next week. Hermione worked feverishly, doing the best she could to keep her mind off of her recent interactions with Professor Snape. _God, that man is so intolerable..._

Hermione spent a good hour completing her Charms assignment until it was praiseworthy by anybody's standards. She looked at the clock, noticing that she had about twenty minutes until her next class. Figuring she'd better be off, Hermione grabbed her things and headed in the direction of Transfiguration. When she arrived there, she sat down with the rest of the Gryffindors. Apparently, Harry and Ron had taken the hint that she wasn't having the best of days, so they hadn't bothered her; they merely hurried along to Transfiguration class. Hermione didn't want them to think she hated them, however, so she flashed the two a quick smile as she prepared her books, quill, and wand.

The lesson was over as quickly as it had started. The Gryffindor trio began walking, once again on their way back to Gryffindor tower. Harry broke the awkward silence that hung over their heads.

"Listen, Hermione, we can tell something's up. And if you wanna talk about it, you know, that's fine. But if you don't, that's okay too. Just know we're here for you, right?"

"Yeah, we're here for you, y'know." Ron piped in.

"Oh, thanks boys," Hermione began. "Well, it's just – okay, if I tell you, do you promise you won't bug me about it or hold this against me for the rest of our school careers?"

"'Course not," said Ron.

"Alright then. Well, you both know how last night after dinner I went to the library to get some work done. Usually I'm fine at keeping track of time, but I was so caught up in my assignments that by the time I checked the clock it was 11. So, of course, I panicked, and I tried leaving quietly, but – " Her face dropped as she began the next part. "But I ran into Professor Snape. Literally, ran into. I rounded a corner and walked right into him, and you can expect he wasn't exactly pleased, shall we say. So, granted, he reprimanded my actions and told me I'd be 'severely punished'."

"So that's why you're all shaken up then?" Ron asked.

"Well, yes, but there's more. I guess I've just been a little spooked. You see, after Snape let me go and I got back to the common room, I started having these eerie, peculiar dreams about him. So today, after potions, he came up to me and gave me detention, but it was the exact same situation in my dream!" Hermione breathed deeply and let out a sigh.

"I'm sure it's no big thing, Hermione," Harry chimed. "I mean, really, what do you think, the guy's in your dreams? He's a creep, but I'm sure he doesn't coordinate his real life speech with whatever goes on in that head of yours."

"Yes, I know, it was just... weird. Déjà vu..."

Ron patted her on the back. "Don't think too much on it, 'Mione."

The three linked arms and made their way back to their dormitories together.


	2. The Fire Inside

**A/N: Thank you so much to my lovely (four) reviewers! Hahah. Doesn't take much to excite me I guess. And yes, thank you TCFellows, I should've mentioned that I'm not exactly sticking to canon. (I don't really think you can blame me for forgetting about the 7****th**** book, really...) And although no one pointed it out, I'd just like to say, yes, it is very cliché, but I'm working on straying from the standard. (I think I'm in one of those 'Pfft, what are you talking about? I'm not creative!' ruts.) But it is my first fanfic, so I appreciate the feedback, I'm only looking to improve.**

**Also, as a side note, I might not get another chapter up as quickly as I had hoped. I have auditions later this week, so I'm basically spending all my free time preparing for that. I'll try to get some writing in though, I promise (That's what my boring classes are for, right?!) Thanks again for your time & patience! **

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"Bloody hell, Harry. At least pretend you know your way around a wizard's chess board, will ya?" Ron moaned. 

"Well Ron, I'm very sorry, not all of us have such a lack of a life that we spend every waking moment playing the blasted game. Please, will you ever learn to forgive me?" Harry retorted sarcastically.

"Oi, bloke, I was only kidding," said Ron defensively.

"I know. Me too." Harry sighed. "I didn't mean to sound like a prat, sorry. I guess this whole thing with Hermione has got me a bit on edge. I mean, I know it's only been a day, but you know she's never like this."

"Mmm, it is a bit weird. But it's not like we can even do anything. She'll be fine, mate. It's 'Mione we're talking about here."

"I suppose you're right," Harry said. "And I mean, it's just a detention. Not like we haven't been through plenty of those, eh?" Harry and Ron chuckled, thinking back to their countless adventures that got them in such deep trouble. _But oh, it was worth it,_ Harry thought.

Meanwhile, Hermione was upstairs, resting again. She had had such a bad day, and it was only to get so much worse. As Hermione lay in her bed, her arms outstretched under her pillow, her legs curled up behind her, she considered ways to make the forthcoming night more bearable. Unable to stop herself, she drifted off into a hazy sleep once more.

_She arrived at the door. One knock was all it took to make her nerves jump on end. A cold, silky voice called back._

"_Enter," Professor Snape said._

_Hermione walked in, clutching her fists in pure fear. Her eyes dragged along the floor, afraid to look up to face the man in front of her._

"_Well, Miss Granger, let us not drag this out any more than intended. Tonight you will be categorizing some of my potions, without magic, I might add. Yes, it is boring and quite a waste of your time. But maybe you'll consider that next time you decide to go 'fromping around' after hours, no?"_

_Hermione's face reddened, partially from anger and partially from embarrassment. She wasn't sure which was more prominent right now. The embarrassment quickly took over as she continued to hang her head in shame._

"_The pantry is this way, Miss Granger. Please do not dawdle." Snape stood up with a swirl of his robes and stormed to the back of the classroom, leading into a door in the corner. It opened up to reveal a rather small, but somehow spacey closet with some of the most fascinating looking potions Hermione had ever seen. She stared in disbelief at row after row of the magical elixirs, astonished at some of their contents._

"_Oh, Miss Granger, I'm sure you've heard of these, stop acting so dumbfounded," Professor Snape snapped at her bitterly. "I will be at my desk if you need me, though I trust you are sufficient enough not to screw up such a simple task as this."_

_With that, he stormed off and left Hermione alone._

She woke up, feeling dizzy and lightheaded. When she realized that it was all a dream and she still had to endure the actual detention later that night, Hermione's heart shrank a little more. She crawled out of bed, straightened herself out, and trudged down the stairs to see Harry and Ron sitting on the couches, half engaged in a battle of wizard's chess.

"Let's just... go to dinner," she muttered to them as they looked up at her.

Harry walked up and put his arm around her. "Hey – it'll be all right. Snape's a down right git, but it's only a few hours. We know you, Hermione, you can do it."

"I had another dream," she said. Ron began to open his mouth but Hermione cut him off.

"I don't want to talk about it, thanks. Let's just go."

They ventured down to the Great Hall, the boys always eager to partake in mealtime, and Hermione eager to get the night over and done with so she would be able to breathe once again. She watched her friends fill their plates with never ending amounts of food, as she quietly sipped her pumpkin juice. _I'm in for a long night..._

Severus Snape sat alone, trying desperately to correct the immense stack of parchments that loomed before him. _Bloody first years... _He scribbled some comments about how to "use a dictionary next time" and "try researching to avoid making yourself look like a _complete _idiot"._Mental note: lower your expectations. It'll mean less nonsense to deal with, _he thought. As he sat there, correcting, he thought about the lovely night he had planned ahead of him. Detention with the Granger girl. Because really, there truly was no other way he'd like to spend his night. He silently cursed himself for not assigning the little Gryffindor brat to detention with Filch. That would at least mean less time he had to spend with her. _Yet, this will at least mean more time to bother Gryffindors. That always proves exciting..._

Snape was brought back to reality when a small knock sounded from his classroom door. He glanced at the ebony clock that grazed his wall, slowly ticking its way through the night. _7:00 already, how lovely. I think it's safe to assume dinner is over..._

"Enter," he voiced shrilly.

Hermione slowly opened the door, trembling and shaking as she walked into the classroom. Professor Snape saw this and smirked, always amused to see such an expression.

"Good evening, Miss Granger," Snape muttered, not yet looking up from his stack of papers.

Hermione stared at the floor, her heart pounding and her mind racing through all the possibilities of how the night would be dreadful. She clutched her hands together painfully, and they began to sweat. She did not even look up when she heard his silky voice cut through the air once more, as it so often tended to do.

"Well, as you are clearly quite eager to discover how you shall be squandering the hours of your night, I figure I might as well inform you now, to save us both time and sanity. You will receive the pleasure of categorizing my potions store. Please do not act excited, as you will be doing this without magic, might I add. Yes, it is boring and quite a waste of your time. But maybe you'll consider that next time you decide to go 'fromping around' after hours, no?"

Immediately, chills ran down her spine, causing her to shake slightly in his presence. He noticed and inwardly chuckled, proud of his ability to make her squirm. However, he was unaware that the true reason was because Hermione had been through this before, and she could detect that.

While Hermione continued to stand, frozen to one spot, Professor Snape began to rise and walk over to the edge of his classroom.

"Follow me, Miss Granger," Snape began, gliding towards the door and opening it with one swift flick of his wand.

He opened the door to a small but filled-to-the-brim closet space, containing all of the professor's finest potions. Some were common concoctions, used for many of their classes, but others, she could tell, were rare, possibly even dangerous, mixtures. Hermione gazed upon the cramped shelves holding what were possibly some of the most magical liquids known to wizard. Seconds later, her trance was broken when Snape grumbled something about "acting dumbfounded".

"I will be at my desk if you need me, though I trust you are sufficient enough not to screw up such a simple task as this." Snape gave one last glance at the Gryffindor girl, her eyes ablaze with both excitement and fear. Then he walked off and left her and her all too busy brain to do whatever the hell they normally did that made her act like such a twit.

Snape rounded on his desk, sat down with a sigh, and looked at the pile of work in front of him that had not decreased at all since he first started. _Well, this night is proving to be lovely so far, _Snape thought, frowning out of disgust. He picked up his quill and started again on the hated task of correcting, all the while wondering why he had become a professor. _Was it really worth it? _He pushed aside these doubts and attempted to focus on the parchments before him, when a meek voice sounded from behind him.

"Um, excuse me Professor, but uh, how exactly should I be... categorizing these?"

Snape gave a deep, heavy sigh. "Whatever you see fit, Miss Granger. You're an intelligent young girl, I'm sure you can work out some system." He finished snapping at her and turned his attention back to his work. _Apparently she's not intelligent enough to follow simple directions, however..._

The night went on, and almost two hours later, Hermione emerged.

"Um, Professor, I hate to be rude, but it's going on 9 o'clock. How long, exactly, were you planning on keeping me here?"

Snape looked at the ebony clock on his wall. Gods, how time had moved. Surprising, too, considering what a dull night it had turned out to be, as expected, however.

"Well, that depends, Miss Granger, on how productive you actually were in your lovely little stay here," he snarked. Snape picked himself up out of the chair and sauntered over to the back room, glancing upon the shelves fixed on the walls. About half of the room was still an utter mess, but the other half shimmered in the dim light, newly ordered into organization by shape, size, and alphabetics.

"And it took you two hours to get this far, Miss Granger?" He stared at her face, waiting for an answer.

"Well, yes. It was a bit difficult without magic," Hermione began, but then stopped explaining herself when she realized it was no use.

"I see. Well, you may finish up tomorrow night then," Professor Snape said, with no hints of sarcasm in his voice. In fact, it was dripping with solemnity.

Hermione was outraged, but she did her best not to show it. On the one hand, she knew not to go against Professor Snape. He was a strong, intimidating man, and he did not just receive that connotation by chance. There was good reason behind it. However, the courageous Gryffindor in her was just bursting out.

"I don't see why I should have to finish this when I was only assigned one night's detention. I worked hard on what I did get done. Why do I need to be punished more?"

Immediately after the words came out of Hermione's mouth, she regretted them, and the feeling only worsened when Snape's face tightened.

"If that is how you feel, then why don't we try a week of detention, hmm?" Snape spat.

Hermione's face fell.

Snape closed in on her as he spoke. "Did you really think you would get away with a night's detention after running around the corridors after hours? And more importantly, _Miss Granger,_" he spat the last two words with nauseating emphasis, "did you think you would get away with that display of Gryffindor cheek you just threw at me? I hope you know that your insolent so called 'courage' is nothing more than an act of disrespect, and that it will not be tolerated under any circumstances. If a week of detentions is what it takes to get that through your thick head, then so be it. Do I make myself clear, Miss Granger?"

By this time, Hermione's face was glowing red with rage. Yet she knew better than to burst at him again. She would just have to face the punishment with as much dignity as she could muster.

Snape stared at her and raised an eyebrow. "Good night," he began, "...Miss Granger."

Hermione rushed off, grabbing her robes and cloak. "Good night, Professor," she muttered, using every inch of strength and composure in her body not to explode at him. She sped back to Gryffindor tower, her entire body steaming with anger. She was furious at him! A whole week? That was most _definitely_ uncalled for!

"Stupid, greasy dungeon git!" she screamed to no one in particular as she stepped into the common room. A few Gryffindors gave her strange yet sympathetic looks, understanding who she clearly must be referring to, while others just stared at her in confusion. She stormed up the stairs and threw herself onto her bed. She was too frustrated to sleep, so she just changed out of her school clothes and sat on the bed for what seemed like hours. Eventually, she crawled under the covers and stared at the ceiling, finally slipping off into sleep.

When morning came, Hermione had still not lost her girlish anger, but she had cooled down a considerable bit. And fortunately for her, she did not have potions class today. Otherwise, she might have found it in her to jump off of the nearest battlement merely to escape the aggravation that Professor Snape caused her.

She got up and walked around the dormitory, getting everything ready for the day. She walked down the stairs, once again greeted by Harry and Ron as they waited for her to go to breakfast.

"Morning, Hermione," Harry smiled.

"Morning," Hermione responded.

"So, uh, how'd it go?" Ron asked, hoping for the best.

"Ugh! I hate that man! He's such a dirty, greasy, disgusting, horrible, soulless, inconsiderate, cruel, annoying –"

"Okay! I guess it didn't go so great then, huh?" Harry said, trying his best to calm his friend down.

Hermione simply stared at him, her face flushed.

"Let's just go get breakfast," said Harry, hoping that a change of subject would bring Hermione back to earth.

For the second time in two days, the trio walked down to the Great Hall with an awkward, unexplainable feeling hanging above their heads. Harry and Ron really did feel terrible for their friend, but on the other hand, they didn't know how much more of this outrage they could stand. Hermione was never like this. She was always calm and level-headed, never frightened and frustrated.

By the time they arrived for breakfast, Hermione had cooled down a bit, but she was still a raging inferno internally, and her fellow Gryffindors could tell. Some veered away, afraid that there might be an outburst at any moment. Others tried consoling her and asking what had her so upset. That was when Hermione realized she didn't need comfort and consolations. She needed revenge. But she knew that was not the way to make the situation any better. If anything, it would just make things worse, although it probably wouldn't hurt her personal pride. _No, I can't do anything bad. That'll just bury me deeper into this mess. I'll just deal with it and show him the Gryffindor lioness in me. Sure he'll enjoy that._ Hermione smirked at the thought.

Hermione scooped some eggs and toast onto her plate, smiling to herself as she buttered them. Ron noticed this, and elbowed Harry.

"Ow! That was my chest, Ron!" Harry whined.

"Sorry, mate, it's just," Ron lowered his voice to a whisper, "'Mione's actually smiling for the first time in... forever."

"Guess she got over Snape real fast then, huh?" Harry half asked.

"Mmm, I guess she did..."

For the rest of breakfast, they all idly chatted, Hermione included. The rest of their surrounding Gryffindors noticed the instant change in Hermione's mood and it was obvious they all wanted to question this, but no one said anything.

The day moved by quickly, first Charms, going by with a breeze. Hermione handed in her Charms paper early, earning her a few scoffs and eye rolls from the Slytherins. In Transfiguration, she managed to earn the Gryffindors a nice chunk of points just by being herself and having an obscene amount of knowledge. Once classes were over, Hermione, Harry, and Ron headed out to the grounds to enjoy the beautiful weather. As they sat, under one of the trees, Harry decided to take advantage of the opportunity and ask Hermione about her seeming change of attitude at breakfast this morning.

"Hey, Hermione. You were pretty bothered this morning, what lifted your spirits?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing in particular," Hermione replied. "Just the mere thought of bothering Professor Snape with my Gryffindor attitude."

"Woah, do you actually mean to say you're excited for your detention then?" Ron asked in disbelief and horror.

"Oh, gods no. I just figure I might as well make the best of this situation, and if I want to survive this week without killing either myself or Professor Snape, I've got to find a way to keep my emotions at bay. So I figure, why not let out the Gryffindor lioness in me? Everybody knows how Snape hates a good Gryffindor, and if I can't retaliate to him the way he did to me, why not just bug him into insanity with my perky, loyal, and courageous golden spirit?"

Harry and Ron just chuckled. _Yeah, that pretty much summed up the 'Gryffindor spirit', all right, _Harry thought. _And that's the Hermione we know and love. Finally, she's back... _

The three continued to chat for some time, straying from the original topic and grazing on countless others. Neville walked by, asking to join, and the four of them sat in contentment under the tree, watching the afternoon fly by, without too many worries or cares.

A short while later, Hermione took note of the time, as she made sure to do ever since her incident in the library.

"I think I'm going to go to the library and get some work done," Hermione said. She smiled at Ron, Harry, and Neville, grabbed her things, and walked off into the castle, heading towards her destination. She spent the next few hours finishing her assignments and getting lost in countless library books, regardless of how many times she had read them previously. Each time brought a new experience to Hermione, and that's what she loved the most. By the time she had finished the book, she realized she had read through dinner. Hermione didn't seem to care, though, she had done it so many times before, and obviously everyone else was used to it, as well. But then, a realization hit her, and her stomach lowered again when she remembered she had, once more, detention after dinner. Hermione begrudgingly put away her book, compiled all her things and neatly slid them into her bag, and made her way down to the dungeons with about five minutes to spare. She arrived at his classroom door and knocked, somewhat more confident tonight, but still a little shaky._Oh, what excitement I'm in for this evening... _

* * *

**A/N: Sorry if this chapter isn't the greatest. To be honest, I kind of rushed it because I just wanted to get one up before auditions. Promises that the next one will be longer and... have a plot... and excitement... and more Snape, and whatnot. And yes, it's moving slowly (sorry, that's how I operate, I wanna keep everyone as in-character as possible). But I have plans now! I actually know what's happening in the next few chapters! So look forward to it.**


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